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Affordable phono preamp suggestions

C

chris lihou

New Member
First off - Schitt Mani - the reigning affordable preamp champ on the review boards, isn't easily available to me here in Canada. So that one is out I'm afraid - unless you have a line on a retailer in Canada.

I'm a vinyl hobbyist - but no audiophile. My last turntable was an entry level Audio-Technica with a built in preamp. My soon to be new table is the Fluance RT82. I felt like it was right where I wanted to be in my vinyl journey, a well reviewed table with a solid Ortofon MM cartridge and a good upgrade path should I feel like getting more out of it down the road. But now I need a phono stage since my current amplifier/receiver doesn't have one.

I'm strongly considering the Fluance PA10 preamp. On the Fluance site it gets fantastic customer reviews, but unlike Fluance turntables, there's not much on them from audio gear reviewers and Youtubers. Most of the customers reviewing the PA 10 were pairing it with a Fluance table, so maybe they work really well together.

The other strong consideration is the iFi Audio Zen preamp - this one also gets great reviews and is in the ballpark cost wise (about $100 CAD more).

Below those two are lower end options ($150-300 range) from Pro-ject, NAD, Cambridge Audio. But after researching, I'm leaning towards Fluance or iFi Zen.

My setup is very basic right now. Running 2 channel for vinyl - KEF q350s as mains, Yamaha rx-v479 amplifier/receiver. If using in home theater mode I'll throw on the Polk HTS 12" for added bass.

Any feedback on above choices appreciated!
 
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Chris: The Zen should be a pretty good choice. Whereas I can't properly comment on the PA10 due to not knowing it. Looks-wise it would seem quite attractive, though, while some of the specs would seem a bit odd (*). So a safer, albeit less attractive looking choice among the less expensive models might be the Art Precision Phono Pre.

Greetings from Munich!

Manfred / lini

*) Output voltage 2.2 V, but maximum phono stage output 125 mV - uhm, huh? And 2,2 V / 30 mV would rather indicate a gain of ca. 37.3 dB, not 38 dB. And if the SNR of 90 dB only applies to the specified input sensitivity of 30 mV, it might be less good, than it would seem at the first glance...
 
chris lihou said:
First off - Schitt Mani - the reigning affordable preamp champ on the review boards, isn't easily available to me here in Canada. So that one is out I'm afraid - unless you have a line on a retailer in Canada.

I'm a vinyl hobbyist - but no audiophile. My last turntable was an entry level Audio-Technica with a built in preamp. My soon to be new table is the Fluance RT82. I felt like it was right where I wanted to be in my vinyl journey, a well reviewed table with a solid Ortofon MM cartridge and a good upgrade path should I feel like getting more out of it down the road. But now I need a phono stage since my current amplifier/receiver doesn't have one.

I'm strongly considering the Fluance PA10 preamp. On the Fluance site it gets fantastic customer reviews, but unlike Fluance turntables, there's not much on them from audio gear reviewers and Youtubers. Most of the customers reviewing the PA 10 were pairing it with a Fluance table, so maybe they work really well together.

The other strong consideration is the iFi Audio Zen preamp - this one also gets great reviews and is in the ballpark cost wise (about $100 CAD more).

Below those two are lower end options ($150-300 range) from Pro-ject, NAD, Cambridge Audio. But after researching, I'm leaning towards Fluance or iFi Zen.

My setup is very basic right now. Running 2 channel for vinyl - KEF q350s as mains, Yamaha rx-v479 amplifier/receiver. If using in home theater mode I'll throw on the Polk HTS 12" for added bass.

Any feedback on above choices appreciated!
Click to expand...

Any MC possible, in your future?
 
Cambridge Solo, U-Turn Pluto 2, Hagerman Bugle, with the Cambridge Solo (and Duo) being very highly reviewed in multiple outlets, and having scored near the very top in objective testing on ASR. If you're going to stay MM, I'd strongly consider the Cambridge.

FWIW, Cambridge products tend to hold their value well, so you'll be able to sell it easily if you move on from it. Same with the Hagerman. U-Turn makes fine products and I had the original Pluto, which was very well made and worked well. Their latest model provides an upgraded circuit and more gain, but they tend to not hold value as well as some others.
 
Another vote for the Zen Phono. In my opinion, it's everything the reviewers say. More than anything, though, this one is quiet! Especially if you spring for the better noise-cancelling power supply....
 
At the low end, the TCI is perfectly fine, and even lower, the eleven dollar board available on the internet that requires you to attach two nine volt battery connectors and RCAs (and a case, if you care) is surprisingly good.
 
Nat said:
At the low end, the TCI is perfectly fine, and even lower, the eleven dollar board available on the internet that requires you to attach two nine volt battery connectors and RCAs (and a case, if you care) is surprisingly good.
Click to expand...
I have two Audiowind A-310 boards ($11-$20?) one heavily modified and one stock running dual 9volt batteries. Several cartridge loading options are available on the Audiowind A-310 including 0pf capacitance which I find handy for Audio Technica MM cartridges requiring 100-200 pf of c loading. Picked up a TCC 750 "Professional" phono pre at an estate sale, upgraded electrolytic caps to film in the signal path and it sounds very good to me.
 
Darlington Labs MM-5. Fully discreet, zero negative feedback, class A design. Much better than the Schiit Mani. I am a former Mani owner and thought it was pretty good until I started comparing it to other phono stages. Some costing a little more, others costing a lot more.
 
After owning and hearing several good, budget phono preamps (including two Mani), I’d suggest one of these. I don’t know if you consider around 300 $ Canadian affordable, but these phono preamps do sound very good:

https://www.ebay.ca/itm/123652759477

The above phono preamp has been in my set-up for about 9 months now. It is the best sounding phono pre that I’ve had so far. Though not as “adjustable” as other phono pre’s - it simply sounds the best to my ears. Rich, smooth detailed and full is how I’d describe it.

I have used two Manis, one each, Phonomena (still have) and Phonomena II (sold), several Realistic phono pre’s, a Little Bear T7 (immediately sold!) and a couple DIY phono pre’s. I thought all were different from one another and liked some more than others. All sounded good - except for one, which was pure garbage. The one I posted the link to, above, is in another world..it’s awesome.

I still have not heard one from Darlington Labs, but I may pick one up to try sometime next year; they look quite interesting.
 
I'm happy with both the Cambridge Audio CP2 and Musical Surroundings Phenomena.

Both are out of production but readily available on the used market.

All my carts are MM, but both stages have MC capabilities.
 
Nat said:
At the low end, the TCI is perfectly fine, and even lower, the eleven dollar board available on the internet that requires you to attach two nine volt battery connectors and RCAs (and a case, if you care) is surprisingly good.
Click to expand...

Yep.

If you have soldering equipment and skills, you can improve them nicely: (1) Remove the 220-pf input caps. (2) Swap the input and output caps with film or in my case Elna SILMIC II electrolytics (these sound great, fit great, and are cheap). (3) Replace the power filtering capacitors with 35 or 50v parts. (4) Replace the stock 12vdc wall wart with a 24vdc linear/regulated wall wart.

I think I have a total of about $35 into mine, having purchased it and the 24vdc wall wart used on eBay, and it will give my Parks Budgie (tube) a run for the money.
 
The TC-750 is a decent budget phono-pre, sub $50. As has been mentioned, it responds well to mods and power supply upgrades. It needs to be left on all the time to sound its best. The Parasound Zphono is another decent option, coming in at less than $250. MM/MC capable, it's not the quietest unit available, but it's a big, dynamic sound, with good detail and plenty of bass, and it's fun to listen to. This one was a Stereophile magazine Recommended Component for several years.

Another thing to consider is the question of what kind of sound you are looking for. Warm? Tonally neutral? Maybe a touch cool to balance a system with plenty of intrinsic warmth? SS vs tube?

I have recently been asking those same questions. Replaced the Parasound with the ifi Zen Phono. A couple of 12AX7s in the tube hybrid pre warm up the sound just enough, it doesn't force you to listen to either component, just the way it should be. It's also a quality alternative to the well-regarded phono-stage in the Kenwood Basic C2. The Kenny stage has the warmth of well-designed vintage SS, the Zen is pretty much invisible. Both sound really good, just different.
 
jqp said:
I have two Audiowind A-310 boards ($11-$20?) one heavily modified and one stock running dual 9volt batteries. Several cartridge loading options are available on the Audiowind A-310 including 0pf capacitance which I find handy for Audio Technica MM cartridges requiring 100-200 pf of c loading.
Click to expand...

I have one of these Audiowind adjustable preamps and it's probably the worst phono preamp I have ever heard... to my ears, it sounds rather grainy and compressed, and it also does not handle clicks and pops gracefully.
 
chris lihou said:
First off - Schitt Mani - the reigning affordable preamp champ on the review boards, isn't easily available to me here in Canada. So that one is out I'm afraid - unless you have a line on a retailer in Canada.

I'm a vinyl hobbyist - but no audiophile. My last turntable was an entry level Audio-Technica with a built in preamp. My soon to be new table is the Fluance RT82. I felt like it was right where I wanted to be in my vinyl journey, a well reviewed table with a solid Ortofon MM cartridge and a good upgrade path should I feel like getting more out of it down the road. But now I need a phono stage since my current amplifier/receiver doesn't have one.

I'm strongly considering the Fluance PA10 preamp. On the Fluance site it gets fantastic customer reviews, but unlike Fluance turntables, there's not much on them from audio gear reviewers and Youtubers. Most of the customers reviewing the PA 10 were pairing it with a Fluance table, so maybe they work really well together.

The other strong consideration is the iFi Audio Zen preamp - this one also gets great reviews and is in the ballpark cost wise (about $100 CAD more).

Below those two are lower end options ($150-300 range) from Pro-ject, NAD, Cambridge Audio. But after researching, I'm leaning towards Fluance or iFi Zen.

My setup is very basic right now. Running 2 channel for vinyl - KEF q350s as mains, Yamaha rx-v479 amplifier/receiver. If using in home theater mode I'll throw on the Polk HTS 12" for added bass.

Any feedback on above choices appreciated!
Click to expand...

Recently picked up two affordable ($100) phono stages just for testing here on the site for those looking, hope this helps.

https://audiokarma.org/forums/index.php?threads/budget-lomc-preamp-shootout.975553/
 
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